Andy Roddick acknowledged that Roger Federer gave him one of the most heatbreaking defeats of his career but underlined that he has nothing but love and respect for the Swiss. Roddick, who captured his first and lone Grand Slam title at the 2003 US Open, made a total of five Grand Slam finals during his career.
In his first Grand Slam final, Roddick defeated Juan Carlos Ferrero. In his next four Grand Slam finals, Roddick suffered four defeats to Federer – three times was beaten in Wimbledon finals and also lost the 2006 US Open final.
“I absolutely love and respect Roger Federer, I don’t say that about many people who ruined my life for a decade,” Roddick said, per Andrew Burton.
Roddick on Federer’s legacy
“For me, it’s what he’s done when no one is watching that will be his legacy,” Roddick added.
On Friday night in London, Federer’s career came to an end after he teamed up with Rafael Nadal for his final match. While Federer and Nadal were sharing the same side of the net, Novak Djokovic was on the bench supporting them.
After the match was over, an emotional Federer made sure to show his gratitude to everybody who helped his tennis journey. “Kudos to Roger for really enjoying it, making it about his team. That was a class act. Even on his night, his retirement, where all eyes are on him, what does he do? He brings his team out to take a bow with them.
I think that just goes to show where his mind is at a lot of the time. On a personal level, Im thankful to have shared some of the biggest stages with Roger. It never went my way but he was classy in defeat, and he was classy in victory. I’ll also be thankful for the respect that he showed me,” Roddick said.
